President blasts Britain

Mugabe casts dispute as colonial fight in post-election speech

April 19, 2008|By GRAHAM BOWLEY The New York Times

President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe used a characteristically fiery speech in marking the anniversary of the country's independence from Britain on Friday, casting the dispute over the country's elections as a fight against colonialism and accusing Britain of being behind the opposition's calls for protests and civil action.

"Down with the British," Mugabe said before 15,000 people at a stadium in a suburb of Harare, the capital, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported on its Web site. "Down with thieves who want to steal our country."

It was Mugabe's first major speech since the disputed election, which threw Zimbabwe into political crisis two weeks ago. He showed no sign of giving ground to the opposition, either by conceding defeat or even allowing the publication of the election results.

Instead, he attacked Britain and his critics within Zimbabwe, who he said were "ignorant" of the country's history or were "deliberately engaged in reversing the gains of our liberation."

The government's accusations of British involvement in Zimbabwe's affairs have become a familiar theme in its verbal attacks against the opposition. The British Foreign Office has issued advice urging Britons to avoid traveling to Zimbabwe for all but the most essential reasons.

On Thursday, the government, in a state-run newspaper, said it had uncovered a plot by the opposition to conspire with Britain to topple Mugabe, who has led the nation since independence from Britain 28 years ago.

Opposition officials dismissed the accusations and said the government was trying to manufacture a case to round up opposition leaders.

Zimbabwe has been wracked by uncertainty since the presidential election last month between Mugabe, 84, a former guerrilla fighter, and Morgan Tsvangirai, 55, the top opposition leader. Independent election monitors have said that Tsvangirai won more votes, but Zimbabwe's election commission has refused to release final results.

Results in legislative elections held alongside the presidential ballot gave control of parliament to the opposition for the first time. But that victory is threatened by a re-count set for today. Officials say they found problems in 23 districts - most of which were won by opposition candidates.

An opposition attempt to stop the re-count was blocked in court Friday. Earlier this week, a court rejected an opposition appeal for the immediate release of the election results. Courts are stacked with Mugabe loyalists.

Nelson Chamisa, a spokesman for the main opposition party, Movement for Democratic Change, said Thursday that violent attacks against the opposition had already begun and that hundreds of opposition supporters had been detained and severely beaten.

Tsvangirai's party has complained bitterly that South Africa, the most powerful country in the region, is not putting enough pressure on Mugabe to step down. Last week, South Africa's president, Thabo Mbeki, urged the world to be patient and denied that Zimbabwe was in the throes of a crisis. On Thursday, South Africa called for election results to be released as soon as possible. "The situation could escalate and soon get out of hand," said Themba Maseko, a South African government spokesman.